By Troy Turner
The U.S. Army is inviting soldiers to apply now until April 30 for its newest MOS, or military occupational specialty: Space Operations Specialist.
Soldiers can opt-into the selection board in the first call to join 40 Delta, which will provide the Army’s first specifically space-focused MOS in a bid to keep its most well-trained and qualified troops in the domain. Space assets have become prominent to U.S. needs in all military branches.
The Army’s Space and Missile Defense Command is headquartered in Huntsville, which also serves as home to NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center, the future headquarters of U.S. Space Command, and numerous other military and civilian assets tied to space research, development and command.
Why we need 40 Delta
Lt. Gen. Richard Zellmann, deputy commander for U.S. Space Command, recently visited Army Space and Missile Defense units in Colorado and Alabama to assess new capabilities.
Space Command is supported by space operations from each of the military branches, all of which, like the Army, are increasing their focus on the space elements of warfare.
Lt. Gen. Richard Zellmann
During his review Zellmann noted how the Army’s new 40D Space Operations Specialist will help. Previously for soldiers conducting space operations roles, they were borrowed from other branches such as the signals and intelligence corps, but returned after two or three years.
The new MOS will go live on Oct. 1, 2026, and provide a permanent career path for these enlisted personnel.
“When I first got into this career field, we, of course, didn’t have an enlisted MOS,” he said. “We would have soldiers come to us, and we would spend a year training them on how to do space operations.
“Then, we would get two years out of them before they returned (to their original branch),” Zellmann said “With a dedicated MOS, you get a whole new level of expertise. Someone could serve in this career area for 20 years.
“Twenty years is wildly different than three years, and the expertise level across the entire force is going to get so much better, because that expertise is going to get deeper and deeper.”
In addition to the standup of the 40D MOS, Zellmann believes that rapid changes in structure, operations and capabilities of the Army and its space command indicate a positive outlook for space operations.
“The Army leadership is moving fast,” he said. “I talked to a number of folks who said (leadership is) moving at a speed that they haven’t seen in a long time, and doing it in a manner that allows for the transformation that the chief of staff of the Army is looking to do. It’s a great time to be in the Army.”
Gainey’s early advocacy
Lt. Gen. Sean Gainey in January 2024 took over as commander of Army Space and Missile Defense Command and was active as an early proponent in shaping the creation of 40 Delta.
He explained why during the 2024 Space and Missile Defense Symposium in Huntsville.
Lt. Gen. Sean Gainey
“It’s clear to me that our Army is missing a major piece of the puzzle when it comes to space operations: a dedicated military occupational specialty that allows NCOs as well as officers to specialize in space at the earliest stages of their career,” Gainey said.
“The Army has a place in space,” he said, “and we need to continue leading the charge by giving our soldiers every opportunity possible to become the experts we’ll turn to during the next conflict.”
Gainey later commented in a Pentagon briefing about the 40 Delta mission.
“Our Army space professionals support unique assets to interdict or disrupt adversaries use of space capabilities, ensuring Army forces maintain the initiative to fight from positions of relative advantage in all domains,” he said, pointing out that soldiers provide close space support to the Army’s conventional and special operations forces.
The new MOS will ensure that enlisted soldiers in the ranks of specialist through command sergeant major will be able to show up to space formations with expertise and experience in space operations, he said.
Jacob Walogo, U.S. Army Space and Missile Defense Command, contributed to this report.
Troy Turner is the editor and senior consultant for AlaDefense.com. He can be reached at [email protected]. His bio can be found here.
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